Pressing machine



5, 1936. R. K. NASH 2,051,884

PRESSING MACHINE Filed June 25, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 1- 1936' R. K. NASH 2,051,884

PRESS ING MACHINE Filed June 25, 1934 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 25, 1936. R, K, N H 7 2,051,884

- PRESSING MACHINE Filed June 25 1934' 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Aug. 25, 1936 UNITED TATE JPRESSING MACHINE Russell K. Nash, *Brookline, Mass., assignor to .Boston Blacking & Chemical .00., Boston, Mass.,

a corporation of Massachusetts Application June 25, 1934, Serial No. 732,245

21 Claims.

, This invention relates topressing machines and is illustrated herein as embodied in a machine for operating .uponpieces of sheet material employed in the manufacture of shoes.

.It is commonpractice in the preparation of shoe upperparts, such as Vamps and tongues for example, to cause a, piece of fabric material to be attached to the leather part as either a lining or a reinforcement for the leather part. These pieces, before being attached to each otheiyare first'cut vto the desired shape, .the fabric part being somewhat smaller than the leather part, and are then superimposed in register so that their edges .are parallel and equidistant fromeach other at all points. Prior to this invention difficulty has been experienced in effecting attachment of parts located as described above without disturbing their register. This diificulty may arise from one or more of several sources such, for example, as an intermittent feed. movement or the application of the feeding force to only one side of the composite work-piece, the movement of which isre- .sisted at the other side by its frictional engagement with a relatively fixed pressingmember.

vide a superiormachine for pressing together the component parts of a laminatedwork piece without disturbing their desired relative positions. While the present invention is illustrated, and will be described, below, with reference to.- effecting the adhesive. attachment of two work-pieces, to one side of atleast one of which has been applied an adhesive coating, it is to be understood that the invention is none theless applicable with regard to operating upon a work-piececonsisting of only a single thickness of .-sheet material for the purpose of removing wrinkles in. it .or otherwise reducingit toa substantially flat condition.

In view of the foregoing, one feature ofthe invention consists in the provision in a pressing machine, of opposed pressing members mounted for movement so as to impart to a work-piece disposed therebetween-a continuous feed movement in aclosed path, means for holding substantial portions of the. pressing surfaces .of said members in contiguous, relation to each other, and means for causing the remaining portions of said members progressively to be moved relatively to each other, first into and then, out of contiguous relation to each other during one circuitof their feed .movement. As a result of the pressing members .having surface contact with each other over substantial portions of their area a work-piece dis- ;posed between the pressing members, in travers- .ing..the path-pf .the .feed .movementreferred to The general object of the invention is to proabove, not only moves continuously but alsore- -;ceives pressure uniformly distributed over its entire area for a predetermined length of time while the pressing members are held in contiguous relation to each other. rsubsequently the work-piece is movedout of the. field of action of the pressing members during the latter part-of one circuitof its. feed movement so-as to facilitate its removal from the machine by the operator. 1

,Further insurance against disturbing the regis- 1 .ter of the parts of a laminated work-piece, as ,treated .inthe. illustrated machine, is .afiorded by the fact that the above-described feed movement isderived as much from one of-the pressing members as from the other, the pressing membersbeing mounted, in accordance with another feature of the invention, so as to rotateabout a common axis whereby one is driven by the otherby frictional engagement without any relative rotation .therebetween.

The locality where the pressing members are not in contiguous relation toeach other is utilized as .a station where work-pieces are.presented toand removed from-the machine and results from causing one of the pressing members, here.- in illustrated asa flexible disk, to be bent away from the other member which supports the work opposite to that area where they are held in con- .tact, aspreviously described. 1

.It is now apparent that the work engaging surfaces of the. pressing members converge toward the locality where they are held in contact and hence form abite intoiwhich the work-piecesad Vance after having been placed on thework supporting pressing member. In view of the possibility of a machine operator having his fingers caught at the aforesaid bite, another object of the invention is to insure against his accidentally placinghis hand dangerously near to the bite. To thisend, another feature of the invention con- ..sists in means extending longitudinally of the bite, which, when hit by the operatofls hand, actuates other means for controlling the movement of the pressing members soas toistop them before any.,.harm can be caused .to the operator. This means, as herein illustrated, is constituted by a latch which not only stops the movement .of the pressing members but also tends to prevent the, operator from accidentallyitouchingthe fiexiblepressing member which, in the illustrated machine,,is normally heatedand which therefore .might endanger a careless operatorffor'this reason also. In order to minimize danger of this type the aforesaid latch is alsoarranged releasably, to hold, in its operative position means, for

rendering the heating means for the pressing member inoperative, so that upon the slightest displacement of the latter under the. influence of the operator the means for rendering the heating means inoperative is released and acts ac cordingly.

These and other features of the invention will be apparent from the following description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation of one embodiment of the invention, parts being broken away and shown in section;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the machine illustrated in Fig. 1 the cover of which has been removed;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged plan view of safety and control apparatus;

Fig. 4 is a view in elevation of the apparatus illustrated in Fig. 3 as viewed from the rear;

Fig. 5 is a sectional elevation of the pressing instrumentalities, the section being taken along the line V-V of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 6 illustrates in perspective one form of work-piece which the illustrated machine is adapted to press.

The illustrated machine is adapted for applying pressure with or without heat to work-pieces in a flat condition with a view either merely to flattenthe work-pieces or to cause adhesive attachment of two or more superimposed parts of a work-piece. The invention is illustrated herein with reference to the application of both heat and pressure to a vamp piece for a shoe upper comprising a leather part L, and a fabric part F commonly called a backing or a doubler on one surface of which is an adhesive substance which, when the leather and fabric parts are pressed together, causes their secure attachment. Pressure is applied to such work-pieces in the illustrated machine by pressing means comprising a work support constituted as herein illustrated by a rotary table or support I0 and 'opposite thereto a flexible pressing member I2 herein illustrated as a disk or plate, the support or table and pressing member being yieldingly held in parallel, contiguous relation rearwardly of their centers by a plurality of rotating conical rolls I 4 so spaced angularly as to hold the pressing member I2 in contact with a substantial portion of the area of the table I 9. The pressing member I2 is thus driven at the same velocity as the support It) by frictional engagement there- With. Thus a work-piece, after being placed upon the work support I0 at the front of the machine, receives a feed movement in a closed circular path which carries it through the abovementioned area underneath the pressing member I2 and the rolls M in succession, the weight of which is sufficient in connection with the speed of the feed movement to insure adequate application of pressure to the work-piece to effect the result to be obtained.

Over the upper surface of the support I0 is. a fabric covering I6 which is drawn tightly about the support by a lacing I8. The support I0 is fixed to a vertical shaft 20 rotatably mounted in a bearing 22 carried by struts 24 extending between the front and rear portions of the machine frame 26. The shaft 20 is driven by a worm gear 28 which is rotated by an electric motor 30 through connections comprising a worm 32 in meshing relation with the gear 28, the worm itself being carried by a rotatably mounted shaft 34 the end of which adjacent to the motor carries a pulley 36 belted to the pulley of the motor 36. The speed reduction between the motor 30 and the support I0 may conveniently be such as to cause the table to rotate at about 5 R. P. M., although it is to be understood that it may be desirable to employ other speeds, depending upon the operation for which the machine is used, the number and size of the rolls I4, and whether heat, as well as pressure, is employed.

As indicated in Fig. 2, the illustrated machine comprises six of the rolls I4 which are mounted radially with respect to the axis of rotation of the support I 6 and are substantially equally spaced and are sufficiently heavy to hold the pressing member I2 in contiguous relation to substantially one half of the surface of the support I 0. The position of the rolls I4 is maintained by inner and outer guards 38 and 40, respectively, which are bolted to a cross piece 42 extending between upright portions of the frame 26 at the front of the machine and at the rear to an upright standard. Each roll I4 is in the form of a truncated cone consisting of solid metal or similar heavy material and has pintles 44 extending from each end. The pintles 44 near the center of the machine are received between the arms of bifurcated guides 46 which are bolted to the inner guard 38,'and the outerpintles 44 are received within notches in guides 48 which are bolted to the outer guard 46. By means of collars 53 adjustably fixed on the outer pintles 44 and disposed one at each side of the guides 48, axial movement of the rolls I4 relatively to the center of the machine can be controlled to a certain extent. The rolls I4, while being rotated idly by contact with the pressing member I2 beneath them which is driven by the Work supportlfi, are constrained against axial movement as mentioned above but are allowed to yield upwardly in response to' the tendency of workpieces to lift the pressing member I2 while it passes through the locality where it is acted upon by the rolls I4.

To facilitate the placement on and removal from the work support of the work-pieces, the pressing member l2, which is illustrated herein as a flexible metallic disk, is bent upwardly at the front portion of the machine and is thus held by a post 52 on which is mounted a ball bearing 54 so that the outer element of the ball bearing engages the lower side of the pressing member I2 adjacent to the edge. Axial alinement of the pressing member I2 with the support I0 is insured by a dowel 56 mounted at the axis of the work support I0 and received in a perforation in the center of the pressing member I2. In case of its being desirable to apply not only pressure but also heat to a work-piece either for flattening it or for causing its components parts to be adhesively united, the illustrated machine includes means for heating the pressing member I2. This means, as illustrated, comprises a gas burner 58 having perforations in its lowermost part so as to direct the flame toward the upper surface of the'pressing member I2 directly beneath the burner. Thus, as successive sectors of the pressing member I2 pass beneath the burner when the pressing member is rotated, it is heated to a temperature suflicient to facilitate a simple pressing operation in one case, or to render tacky a heat-responsive adhesive with which the surface of a backing or doubler part adjacent to a leather part is coated. The burner is supported by brackets 60, 60 which are secured to the guards 3'8 and- 40, so asto extend'substantially radially hi the pressing member nearly to its center, as illustrated in Fig. 2. Gas is supplied to the burn- -er -58 through a pipe 62 and the flow ofgas is interrupted or regulated by avalve'e l which is operated in conjunction with a switch 66 for starting and stopping the motor 35, and a brake 68 for stopping the rotation of the work support It, as will be described below.

The valve as is operated so as to control the flow of gas through the pipe 62 by a controller herein illustrated as a lever which normally, when the machine is in operation, occupies the position in which it is illustrated in Figs} 3 and 4, in which operative position it also causes the switch 66, a well-known type of toggle switch, to close a circuit which delivers electrical power to the motor 30. The lever in is normally urged in a clockwise direction (Fig. 4) by alink 12 which is connected to one arm of a'bell crank M, to the other arm of which is connected another link 16. The link l5 at its rearmost'end is connected to one arm of a bell crank 18 pivotally mounted on the strut 2d, the other arm of which bell crank carries the brake 58 in'such a position as to engage the rim of the pulley 35 when'swung toward it. A spring -88 connected at one end to the frame and at the other to the depending arm of the bell crank '58 'yieldingly holds the brake 68 against the pulley 35 when the lever 16 referred to above is released, as will be described below. v

"The lever in is heldin its operative position, in which it is illustrated-in Fig. 4, against the tension of thespring 8% by means of a latch member 82 having a pin 8% adapted to be received within-a perforation in the upper end of the lever 10. The latch member 32 is mounted at its lefthand end (Figs. 2 and 3) on a pin 83 fixed thereto and slidably received in a bracket 83 fixed to one of the upright members of the frame 26. A compression spring 96 surrounding the pin 8'5 and bearing against the bracket 88 is arranged normally to hold the latch memberBZ against the adjacent side of the lever H! so as to'cause the pin 84 to releasably hold the lever K6 in its operative position. The latch member 82 is mounted at its right-hand end (Fig. 2) on a hinge SZso as to allow the latch member to swing to a certain extent, limited by the pin 86; when touched by the operator. It will-be notedby reference to Fig. 5 that the latch member 82 is positioned well toward the bite formed where the work engaging surfaces of the pressing member and "support It converge and hence serves to prevent the operator from burning his fingers by touch- -ing-the pressing member it as mighteasily result from placing them too far toward'the center of the machine in presenting a work piece thereto. The latch member 82 also insures that the ma- 'chine will be stopped if the operator should accidently place his hand dangerouslyncar-the bite between the pressing member and the work support, as will now be described. The strength of the spring 95 is so slight as to allow the latch member -82 to be moved inwardly toward the "center of the machine, therebyto release the le -ver 10 upon a very slight amount of pressure being exerted against it,'as'rnight occur if the operators'- hand were accidentally 'moved against the 'la'tch member 82 or underneath: it. Such movement of the latch member 82 causes-the pin a to'b'e moved away'from the lever H! which 1 theni u'nder the influence of the spring Silyswings iapidly in-a clockwise direction (Fig; 4-) to -:its

. inoperative position and causes the switch 456 to open the electric circuit to the motor, thereby stopping'th-e" latter, closes the valve r64 turning-off the heat, and alsocauses the brake 68 to -b-e applied tothe pulley 36 for the .purpose'of stopping-the rotation of the work support l0. 1 For convenience in starting the machine ag'ain there is provided a hand lever 94 which can be swung from its dotted line position inFig. Biltothe full 'lineip'os'ition to reset the latch "82 and to start the operation of the machine both by turningon the gas and causing rotation of the work support I I 0. *Apilot burner (not shown) may be'associated 'with theburner58'toignite the gas when the gas valve 64 is 't'urned'on. For the purpose of con- 'serving heat and maintaining the temperature of over'the outer 'guardmember 4O andtoext'end 'downwardl'y as farlas 'the level of the Work support '10, as illustrated in Fig. 1. For the convenience of the operator in presenting iwork pieces to the "machine and in caring for the finished work-, 'th'e machine is equipped with a" table 98 fixed to the frame of "the machine at thefront directly beneath the work support Iii. 1n the operation of'the machine for effecting the "attachment of superimposed par-ts'of a work- 'pieceo-f the-type illustrated in Fig.6, the machine is first star'ted byoperating the lever 94 so as to start the motor 3c and to open the valve'M. The n1a chine isthen run idly until the pressing .memin er L2. as af'result of rotating 'b'eneathftheiburner 58;has been brought to the desired temperature. At this. point the operator may begin placing'the shoe parts to be united in register with each other on the work support It), as indicated for 'example in' Fig. 2; the: rotation of the work table being so slow as not to disturbthe register of the parts 'ofmlg theworkz-piece as they. are placed on it. The work-piece is thus placed on the worksupport l0 atany desired locality where the pressing member 12 is bent upwardly away from it. This position may :conveniently be toward the left hand side. ofthe machine (Fig. 2) so as toallow the'operatorspace and also time for the removal of work- ..pieces from the'machine as they emerge from the .bite' betweenthe support I 0 and pressing memberv l2 at the right-hand side'of the ma-:

chine. Owing tothe rotary'movement of the work support l0, .it imparts to a work-piece'placed thereon a:continuous feed movement in a closed circular path. The pressing member l2 also participates in feeding the'work by being driven' at the same speed as that of the work support In by frictionalengagement with it at points not covered by the work-piece. For this reason the ad- ..vance of the work-pieces through-the machine results'as much from the force applied to its up-.: -per surface by thepressing member [2 from --the force applied by the work support It) to its lower surface whereby the possibility of the parts of a laminated work-piece being misalined during the pressing operation is minimized. A substantially uniform application 'of pressure to the work-pieces is thus effected as a result of the parjallel,,oontiguous relation of the pressing member and thework support which is insured by the rolls M which-yieldingly hold the pressing mem ber-l2 and work support It) together while passing through substantially a half revolution. -As

a work-piece passes beyond this locality, success-sive portions of thezpressingmember H are :bent

first upwardly away'from the work support -ia-ii cilitating the removal of the work-piece from the support at the front of the machine, and then downwardly again toward the work support I0.

In the normal operation of the machine, the lever 10 is held in its operative position, as is described above, by the pin 84 which extends into the perforation in the upper end of the lever thereby resisting the tendency of the spring to cause the lever "I9 to be swung to its inoperative position. If, however, the operator carelessly places his hand or hands so near to the bite between the pressing member l2 and the table H] as to endanger them by burning or by being seized in the bite, the latch member 82 is swung inwardly against the resistance of the spring in response to the lightest pressure from the operator's hand so as to withdraw the pin 84 from the lever 10. Thereupon the lever 10 swings rapidly from its full line position, as illustrated in Fig. 3, to its dotted line position and carries the hand lever 94 also to its dotted line position from which it can be moved by the operator to start the machine again.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a pressing machine, opposed pressing members, said pressing members being mounted for movement so as to impart to a work-piece disposed therebetween a continuous feed movement in a closed path, means for holding substantial portions of said members against movement relatively to each other and in contiguous relation to each other during a portion of one circuit of their feed movement, and means for causing the remaining portions of said members progressively to be moved first out of and then into contiguous relation.

2. In a pressing machine, opposed pressing members, said pressing members being mounted for movement so as to impart to a work-piece disposed therebetween a continuous feed movement in a closed path and having pressing surfaces which are continuous in the direction of the said feed movement, and means for causing opposite successive portions of said members to be moved progressively away from and then toward each other during their passage between spaced localities in said path, and also to be held in contiguous relation to each other during their passage of the remainder of the said path.

3. In a pressing machine, opposed pressing members, means for rotating said pressing members in order to impart to a work-piece disposed therebetween a circular feed movement, means for deflecting successive portions of one of said members progressively away from the other of said members during their passage'of a predetermined sector of their feed movement to facilitate the placement of a work-piece therebetween, said means also being constructed and arranged to hold said members in contiguous relation to each other during their passage of the remainder of one circuit of their feed movement.

4. In a pressing machine, opposed pressing members comprising a rotary table and disk, means for rotating said table to impart to a work-piece disposed thereon a feed movement in a circular path, means for holding the pressing surface of said table and disk together against relative movement while traversing a sector of said path, and means for holding the pressing surfaces of said table and disk apart while they are traversing the remaining portion of said path.

5. In a pressing machine, pressing means comprising a support and a flexible pressing member, means for moving said support toimpart to a work-piece disposed thereon a feed movement in a closed path, means acting upon one side of said pressing member to cause its pressing surface to be held in contiguous relation to the support throughout a portion of said path, and means acting upon the other side of said pressing mem ber for holding its pressing surface away from the support throughout the remainder of said path.

6. In a pressing machine, opposed pressing members mounted to rotate about a common axis and having pressing surfaces which are continuous in the direction of their rotation, and means for causing opposite successive sectors of said pressing members to be moved relatively to each other alternately into and out of parallel contiguous relation to each other.

7. In a pressing machine, opposed pressing;

members mounted for movement about an axis so as to impart a feed movement to a work-piece disposed therebetween in a plane perpendicular to said axis, rolls acting upon one of said pressing members to hold their pressing surfaces in contiguous relation to each other throughout a portion of said feed movement, and means for causing said pressing surfaces to be separated from each other elsewhere throughout said feed movement.

8. In a pressing machine, pressing means comprising a rotary table and a flexible disk, means for moving said table to impart a circular feed movement to a work-piece thereon, means for holding a sector of said disk against said table, 3 5

and means for causing the remaining portion of said disk to be deflected away from said table.

9. In a pressing machine, rotary pressing members mounted for movement about a common axis one of which members is rotated by frictional engagement with the other thereby to impart to a work-piece disposed therebetween a feed movement in a closed path, means for holding the pressing surfaces of said members together while they turn through a portion of said path, and means for holding the said pressing surfaces apart while they are traversing the remaining portion of said path.

10. In a pressing machine, rotary pressing means comprising a support and a pressing mem- 5O ber mounted to rotate about a common axis, the cooperating surfaces of said support and pressing member being continuous in the direction of their movement, rolls mounted and arranged to hold the support and pressing member in contiguous relation to each other as they pass through a predetermined sector of a revolution, and means for relatively separating said support and pressing member as they are moved through the remainder of said revolution.

11. In a pressing machine, a rotary support, a flexible pressing member, means for holding said pressing member in pressing relation with the support as they turn through a predetermined sector of one revolution whereby said pressing member is rotated by frictional engagement with the support, and means for bending said flexible pressing member away from the support as they turn through the remaining portion of one revolution thereby to facilitate the insertion of a work-piece between said pressing member and support.

12. In a pressing machine, a rotating support, a pressing member constructed and arranged to be separated from the support at a locality where work to be pressed is presented to said support, and means for yieldingly holding said pressing member against said support opposite the abovementioned locality thereby to cause the latter to be rotated by frictional engagement with and at the velocity of the support.

13. In a pressing machine, a rotatable work support, a pressing member cooperating with said support to exert pressure upon a work-piece disposed therebetween, means for rotating said support to impart to the work-piece a feed movement in a circular path, said support and pressing member being mounted so that their pressing surfaces are in contiguous relation to each other throughout a substantial portion of said path whereby said pressing member is rotated by frictional engagement with said support, and means for separating said support and pressing member as they are moved through the remainder of said path to facilitate the placement of a work-piece therebetween.

14. In a pressing machine, a rotary work supporting table, a flexible pressing member mounted to rotate about the axis of rotation of said table, means for yieldingly holding said pressing member in contact with a substantial portion of the area of said table, means for rotating said table and said pressing member, and means disposed between said table and pressing member opposite said area mounted and arranged to deflect said pressing member away from said table to facilitate the placement of a work-piece therebetween.

15. In a pressing machine, a rotary support, a flexible pressing member, rolls for yieldingly holding said pressing member in contact with a substantial portion of the surface of said support, means for rotating said support whereby said pressing member is rotated by engagement therewith, and a member spaced from said work support adapted to engage the side of said pressing member adj-acentto said work support for causing said pressing member to be bent away from said support opposite to said area where they are held in contact with each other.

16. A machine of the class described having, in combination, rotary feed members having converging surfaces to form a bite, driving mechanism for rotating said members, and means for normally maintaining said mechanism operative and for rendering said mechanism inoperative if the operators fingers approach too near the bite of the rotary members, said means comprising a controller the position of which determines the operativeness or inoperativeness of the driving mechanism, means tending at all times to urge the controller to move into position to render the driving means inoperative and a latch located in front of the bite of the rolls and acting to hold the controller normally in position to render the driving mechanism operative.

1'7. In a pressing machine, rotary pressing members the work-engaging surfaces of which converge to form a bite, means for heating one of said pressing members, means for renderin said heating means inoperative, and operator controlled means disposed at said bite between the pressing members for actuating said last mentioned means.

18. In a pressing machine, rotary pressing members the work-engaging surfaces of which converge to form a bite, means for heating one of said pressing members, means for controlling said heating means tending normally to render it inoperative, and means for actuating said controlling means to render said heating means inoperative disposed between said pressing members at the said bite.

19. In a pressing machine, pressing members the work-engaging surfaces of which converge to form a bite, means normally operable to move said members to impart a feed movement to a work-piece disposed therebetween, means for controlling said last mentioned means arranged to tend to render it inoperative, and an operator controlled latch disposed at said bite arranged normally to prevent said controlling means from stopping the feed movement of said pressing members.

20. In a pressing machine, pressing members the work-engaging surfaces of which converge to form a bite, means for heating one of said presser members, means for controlling said heating means constructed and arranged to tend to render it inoperative, and an operator-controlled latch disposed at said bite mounted and arranged releasably to hold said controlling means in its operative position.

21. In a pressing machine, rotary pressing members, means for moving said pressing members to cause a feed movement to be imparted to a work-piece disposed therebetween, means for heating one of said pressing members, means arranged normally to render said heating means inoperative, means for controlling said heating means and the said first mentioned means constructed and arranged to tend normally to render them inoperative, and an operator-controlled latch disposed at the said bite between the said pressing members for releasably holding said controlling means in its operative position.

RUSSELL K. NASH. 

